Framed
by The Muse of Apollo
Summary: AU: He was arrested for her mother's murder. She sat in the courtroom and watched as the jury convicted him of the crime. She visits him, without fail, once a month, asking "Why?" but each time, he insists he's innocent. Full prompt inside. COMPLETE.
1. Chapter 1

**a.n. Prompt from CastleFanFicPrompts on Tumbler and LordofKavaka:**

_AU: He was arrested for her mother's murder. She sat in the courtroom and watched as the jury convicted him of the crime. She visits him, without fail, once a month-for years, simply asking "Why?" but each time, he insists he's innocent. Then one day, Kate Beckett finally makes detective, and while putting her mom's "Parade of Elephants" on her desk, she accidentally drops it. It breaks, and a tape falls out. She's been wrong all this time. Richard Castle was framed._

xxxx

She can't believe her favorite author had her mother killed. She had her doubts right up until the jury came back with a guilty verdict. Surely if the jury thought he was guilty it had to be true, right?

But _why?_ Why did he do this? How did he even know her mother? How could someone like that do something so terrible? He had ruined her life. He had cost her not one, but both of her parents. She needed to know why.

So she asked him.

A month after his conviction, she met him in jail for the first time. She said nothing for the first five minutes. All she did was sit there and stare at the man who had taken her mom's life away. She needed to know.

"Why?" She said it in such a small voice she didn't know if he had even heard her.

"I didn't do this. I didn't do what they said I did," He responded, his eyes pleading with her to believe him. She didn't. The jury wouldn't lie.

Figuring she wouldn't get an answer out of him, she decided that she'd let him rot in prison for a while and see if he would give her the answers after that.

xxxx

_One Month Later…_

Two months after his conviction, and a month after the judge had sentenced him to the death penalty, she visited him again. She had just gotten off a long shift as a uniform cop, but she needed to know. She needed to know why.

So she asked him. "Why?"

Again his response was the same. "I didn't do this. I didn't do what they said I did. Please, you have to believe me."

Between the exhaustion and the grief that was ever present in her life these days, she shouted, "I don't have to do anything! I need to know why you did this! Why did you take her away from me? Why?!"

He looked at her with tears in his eyes, and simply whispered, "I didn't do this. I didn't do what they said I did."

xxxx

She visited him in prison every month for the next eight years. Being a wealthy author he could afford to appeal the verdict, to delay his execution. Every visit went the same. She'd ask him why. He'd say he didn't do it.

The day she made detective, she went to see him again. Again it went the same. She had changed her entire life because of this man. She was going to be a lawyer. Maybe make it all the way to Chief Justice. Now she was a cop. She wanted to be the one who got the answers for other people, even if she never got hers.

She still needed to know why, and she would continue to ask right up until the moment Richard Castle, the bastard, took his last breath.

xxxx

The next day she got her assignment. She made her way through the bullpen of the 12th precinct and sat the box of her things on her new desk. She took off her jacket and looked around. There weren't many people in the precinct yet, so she had the place to herself for the most part. Deciding that she wanted to get situated before her new partners arrived, she pulled out the framed picture of her mom and dad and put it on the right corner of her desk.

Then she picked up the elephants which had sat on her mother's desk. She was about to put them in their proper place when she heard, "Yo! Beckett! You're here too?"

Startled by the sudden outburst of sound, she dropped the elephants on the floor. They shattered. In a single moment, one of the most precious things she had left from her mother was lying broken on the floor.

She couldn't handle this. It was too much. Bending down, she fondly started picking up the pieces while tears flowed down her cheeks.

She paused when her fingers stumbled over something that didn't belong. A tape.

xxxx

She didn't do anything with the tape until she got back to her apartment that day. Her first day as a real detective had been terrible. It had started out with the broken elephants and hadn't gotten better. She was paired with two young rookie detectives like herself, both of whom she knew, and an older detective who was seriously past his prime.

He had the unfortunate habit of looking her up and down every time he spoke to her, and it made her feel dirty. It made the whole day uncomfortable.

When she finally arrived at her apartment, she decided she needed a glass of wine. She normally stayed away from alcohol because of her father, but today she needed something to make it all go away. It wasn't until she was half way through the first glass that she remembered the tape in her pocket.

She knew that it had to have been put in the elephants by her mother or someone close to her mother. She knew that it had to be important if her mother had taken the time to hide it away where no one would ever think of looking for it.

She got up off the couch and went to her closet where she kept an old style tape player from her college days. She'd had a recorder which had taken these small cassette tapes, so she had needed to be able to play them back. Luckily for her, she never threw anything out.

xxxx

After listening to the tape one time, the only sound in her apartment was the shattering of the wine glass as it hit the floor. She couldn't believe it. Richard Castle had been telling the truth for eight years. He hadn't had her mother killed. He had been framed.

Her first thought was that it couldn't be right. She knew one of the voices on the tape. It was Roy Montgomery, her captain. The man who had been there for her after catching her in the records room during her first week as a uniform. How could he be involved in this, he was a cop. But the tape didn't lie. His voice was there. Richard Castle's wasn't.

Her next thought was one of immense shame. An innocent man had sat on death row for eight years, and she had rubbed it in his face once a month. The man had a daughter. He had been taken away from his daughter almost like her mother had been taken away from her. How could the system do this to an innocent man? Why?

She had to know why. She had to make this right.

xxxx

**a.n. Probably a three parter. Let me know if you want me to continue.**


	2. Chapter 2

**a.n. Big thanks to everyone who reviewed, faved, and followed. You're all awesome! Here's part two.**

**Disclaimer: Owning Castle would be awesome. But I do not.**

**xxxx**

She couldn't take the tape to Montgomery for obvious reasons. He was somehow involved in this, and even if he hadn't been there when her mother had died, he still knew who'd had her killed, and still he said **nothing.**

She couldn't believe he had betrayed her, betrayed the badge. She had trusted him, and in the process ruined the life of a good man.

She took the tape to Internal Affairs and talked to a woman by the name of Victoria Gates. Gates was a cold, by the books woman who was shocked when Beckett walked her through what she knew of the case. Kate could tell at first she didn't believe her.

Then she played the tape.

Gates had known Roy Montgomery for twenty years. She had never thought it possible that he could be involved in something like this.

After playing the tape three times, Beckett was shocked when Gates said she knew who'd had her mother killed. She had recognized the voice.

William Bracken had had her mom killed, and had then framed Richard Castle. But why?

xxxx

It took a month. It took a month of hard work to get it to the point where Richard Castle could be released from jail. They knew he didn't do it. Beyond the tape, the team Gates had assembled had vindicated Castle by actually going over the evidence. Castle had nothing to do with the murder, though he had known her mom. He had been a huge contributor to the Justice Initiative, and had met Johanna Beckett several times to organize fundraisers for the legal group, including the night of her murder.

Kate stood outside the prison the day he was going to be released, waiting for him to walk through the gates. She had expected to see his family here, but she didn't see anyone waiting.

She had been nervously anticipating this moment. She needed to apologize. But beyond that she had no idea what to say to the man who had lost eight years of his life for a crime he couldn't have committed.

She was brought out of her thoughts by the sound of the gates opening. She looked up and was met by his stunning blue eyes.

He scowled at her and started to walk away.

"Mr. Castle!"

"I'm sorry, Ms. Beckett, I have nothing to say to you, except that I didn't do it."

"Listen. Will you at least talk with me?"

He stopped, turned around and met her gaze. She shivered at the ice cold anger in his eyes. This had been a man who had laughed a lot in his life. A man who had been happy. Looking at his face, she knew that man was gone.

"I know I'm sorry doesn't mean anything, but at least for my part in this I am sorry."

His face softened a tad before he said, "For what it's worth Detective, I am so sorry for your loss. Johanna was a friend, and I liked her a lot. She was one hell of a lawyer. Now if you'll excuse me."

He turned at walked away.

"Wait! Castle. Do you need a ride?"

He stopped again and considered her.

"I have nowhere to go," he said sadly.

For a minute she was shocked. How could this man, who had written a half dozen best sellers not have anywhere to go? What about his daughter? Or his mother? She had read his file and knew that his daughter lived with her mom in California, but his mom, Martha, was in the city. "What about your family?"

He laughed. "What family, Detective? I haven't seen my daughter in eight years. My mother wouldn't come see me, and now she's dead. I've lost everything. I spent every dime I had trying to keep myself from dying for a crime I didn't commit. I have nothing."

She had to keep reminding herself that this wasn't her fault. She hadn't been the one to set him up to take the fall for this, but she still felt guilty. She still felt terrible that this man, who had been her mother's friend, had lost everything. "Stay with me," she said before she could think about it too much.

"What?"

"Stay with me. At least until you have somewhere to go."

He was shaking his head. "I don't need your pity, Detective."

"It's not. You need a place to stay, and I have a guest room. It's yours if you want it. Please. Just let me do this much for you."

He looked at her for several moments before he nodded. "Okay. Thank you." He smiled at her then walked towards her, following her to her car.

_What are you doing, Kate?_

xxxx

"I was naïve," Kate said a couple hours later. They were sitting on her couch staring blankly at the television. Neither had said more than a few words since they had entered her apartment.

"What?" he asked, his voice cracking from disuse.

"I was naïve. I thought at the time that the system worked, that it could never get something so wrong. I figured that if the jury convicted you, you must be guilty. I was a new cop at the time, so I was being trained at how to bring justice to people. I never thought it could be so broken."

He smirked, but with little humor, "Neither did I."

"What are you going to do now?"

He sighed, running his hand through his hair. "I don't know. I guess I need to get a job, first. I'm going to need money if I'm going to start to be normal again."

"You're not going to go back to writing?" She asked.

He shrugged. "I would like to, but no publishing house is going to touch me. Black Pawn bailed the minute the conviction went through. Hell they even sued me for the last advance I received."

"Surely now someone out there would take a chance? I loved your writing."

"You've read my books?" he asked, surprised.

"Yeah. You, uh, were my favorite author before all this. I haven't read one in a long time though."

"Eight years, right?"

"Yeah," she said quietly, not meeting his eyes, unsure why she felt so uneasy. "I destroyed them once I found out."

They were quiet for several minutes, both just lost in their thoughts. "I don't blame you for this, you know that right?"

"What?" She asked, confused.

"Me, prison. That wasn't your fault. And I don't blame you for not believing me all those times I said I didn't do it. I wouldn't have believed me either."

She didn't know what to say to that. How did he know she felt unnecessary guilt for his situation, for having visited him so often, blaming him for what had happened to her mom?

"I…" She just didn't know what to say, so she changed the subject. "How did your mom die?"

"Car accident. She, uh, didn't handle my conviction well and ended up in the bottle. She ran herself off the road one night on her way home, and that was it. I didn't even get to go to the funeral." He said the words in a flat tone, but she could still sense the pain that it had caused him.

"I'm sorry. My dad, he's still in the bottle. I don't know if he'll ever come out."

He sighed. "How did this happen?"

"What?"

"This? How did everyone's life get so damned messed up? Who did this? He ruined so many lives."

She sighed. She wasn't supposed to tell him. The investigation was ongoing, but if there was anyone out there that deserved to know the truth, it was him. "William Bracken."

"Wait. You know his name?"

She nodded. "Yeah. It's how we were able to get you out. I found a tape with his voice on it, basically confessing to my mom's murder."

"Then why isn't he in jail yet?" he said angrily.

"It's not enough, though we're close," Kate said, quickly, not wanting him to get any angrier. "I focused on getting you out first. You deserved to get out as quickly as possible."

He took a deep breath and leaned back into the cushions of her couch. "I'm sorry for yelling."

"I'm angry too. I understand."

"I know."

"We'll get him. It just has to be done right this time. If we don't do it right, dot every I and cross every T, then he'll just get away with it."

Again they sat in silence for several minutes. Kate looked him over. Despite being in prison for eight years, he was still a handsome man. His hair was longer than it had been in the pictures on the backs of his books, and he sported more facial hair than she ever remembered seeing him with, but he was still very handsome. She could remember having a huge crush on him during her last few years of high school and first year of college. Mentally shaking herself, she looked back towards the TV. She couldn't have those thoughts.

_Snap out of it, Kate._

**xxxx**

**a.n.2. Added a fourth part. Hope you liked it. Reviews are awesome!**


	3. Chapter 3

**a.n. So a little bit of a time jump here. Also, read to the fifth paragraph before you give up on it. **

Kate sat on her couch, sobs wracking her body. It was over. He was dead. She couldn't believe after months of this that some sniper had taken him out. How could this have happened?

She had been sitting on her couch for more than two hours, his blood still on her hands and shirt as she tried to comprehend that he was gone. Even after all he had done, he still meant something to her.

She was shaken out of her thoughts by her front door being unlocked. Her roommate for the last six months entered, the grocery bags in his hands wobbling while he tried to get inside the apartment.

She heard the bag of groceries drop the floor as he rushed to her, apparently having seen the blood.

"Kate, what happened?" Castle asked, placing his strong hands on her shoulders.

"Montgomery. He…he was shot today. He was going to testify," Kate said, her voice uneven from hours of crying. Montgomery had been their one link to Bracken, their only witness that could help them bring the SOB who had killed her mom to justice. Now he was dead.

"Oh, God. Are you okay? Are you injured?"

She shook her head. The blood was all Montgomery's. She had been bringing him into the precinct for another round of questioning as they buttoned down their case against the senator, when a bullet from a sniper rifle had pierced his heart. At first she didn't know if she was crying because he had died or because he had been their only hope of taking Bracken down. Now she knew that it was more the latter than the former. But even then, she still didn't want him to die. Even knowing what he had done. Even knowing how his actions had led to her mom's death. She had forgiven him enough that she didn't want him to die.

Castle sighed and sat next to her, pulling her into his side as he held her. They had gotten close over the last six months. Castle had gotten a job at the New York Public Library, and had started to pay half the rent on her apartment just a few weeks after he had come to stay with her. He had asked her repeatedly if she wanted him to find his own place, but surprisingly she liked having him around. She liked having a friend to come home to, someone who she could share everything. He had become her best friend.

He had started writing again, and she had bought a new set of his books. To her surprise, she found that she liked them even more now than she did before. He had gotten an advance from a new publishing company and was working on the first novel of a new series based on her. When he had told her about his idea, she had scoffed at the idea, but after he had shared the first 10 chapters with her, she had fallen in love with it.

As she sat there being held so gently, she realized that it wasn't the books she had fallen in love with. It was him. And that thought scared her.

"What happened," he asked, when she quieted down.

She told him how they had been transporting Montgomery, and how he had been shot. How she had knelt beside him, holding the wound as he took his last breath. How she had completely lost it once they knew there was no bringing him back. How Gates had to forcefully pry her from his body as the ME came up to start processing the remains. She told him everything, like she always did.

"I don't think we can win without him," Kate whispered. "Without his testimony, this is over. Bracken gets away with what he did to my mom, what he did to you. I don't know if I can deal with that."

"You will get him, Kate."

She looked up from where her head rested on his shoulder, and wiped away the tears on her cheeks. "You can't know that."

"But I do. You came to see me in prison every month for eight years. You never, not once, gave up on getting the answer to your question. You would have kept right on asking until the day my life ended. I know you would have. You are the most tenacious, persistent, extraordinary person I know. You will get Bracken. You'll find a way."

She was always dumbstruck when she thought about where they were right now. Here was a man who had been accused of her mom's murder, who had been placed on death row, who'd had to face her accusing gaze once a month for eight years, and he still had such high regard for her.

"I hope you're right," she said before she could do something stupid, like kiss him.

He stood up and tugged on her hands, bringing her up with him. "Come on, go get cleaned up, you'll feel better. I'll cook dinner. I've got some good news."

xxxx

"So, what's your good news, Rick?" Kate asked after they had finished their meal. They sat at her (their) kitchen table, each drinking a glass of red wine.

"I got news today of the settlement. I don't really care to go trial, so my lawyer was able to get a number from the Attorney General." He had sued the state for wrongful incarceration a month after he had gotten out. He wasn't going to, but Kate had persisted, telling him that he deserved to be compensated at least for the money he had lost, even if he couldn't get the time back.

"Oh? Are you rich again?"

"Well, not yet."

She lifted her eyebrows as she took another sip. "Are you going to make me guess?"

"Twenty million."

She swallowed hard, nearly expelling the wine through her nose. "Twenty million? Holy… Wow."

"Yeah. Listen, Kate, I have something to ask you."

Nervously she focused on him again, wondering what he could have to say after such a revelation. "Okay."

"I don't need twenty million dollars. I'm back writing again, and the book is good enough to get published. I was thinking that I'd put some of that money in a fund; a scholarship fund in memory of your mom. They could use it for young law students who want to focus on working the cases nobody else wants, like those focused on by the Justice Initiative. Would that be something you'd be okay with?"

"You want to create a scholarship fund in memory of my mom," Kate asked, completely stunned by the gesture.

"Yeah. I mean, we shouldn't just remember her for her death, you know?"

It was so sweet, so unexpected that she didn't know what to say. Here was a man who had lost everything who wanted to do something like this for her mom.

"That's sweet, Rick. Of course, I wouldn't have a problem with it."

He smiled at her, relief flooding his beautiful blue eyes. "Good then." He finished off his wine and got up to put it in the sink.

When he came back she was still staring into her nearly empty glass thinking about the feelings that were swirling around inside her. After her mom's death she had closed herself off. She had walled off her heart so that she would never get hurt again. She glanced up at the man who had just sat down across from her. For the first time in nearly nine years she was thinking about letting someone into her heart.

"I want to give you some too," Castle said, breaking the silence.

"What?" she said, her voice breaking.

"I want to give you some of the money too. I know you don't need it or even want it, but I want to give some to you."

"No, Rick, I don't want your money."

"Kate. I wouldn't be here if it weren't for you. You proved my innocence."

"It was chance, Castle. Anyone would have done it."

"Okay, but I still wouldn't be here. I'd be living on the streets, probably fighting with some guy named Joe over the nicest box. You offered me a place to live, and I'll never be able to repay you for that."

She sighed. "I don't want your money, Rick. I don't."

"I know. But I want to do it. We don't have to argue over it now, just think about it okay?"

"Okay."

xxxx

_One Week Later…_

After Montgomery had been arrested, the decision had been made to keep his crimes quiet for as long as possible in order to keep the knowledge that he was in custody from Bracken. Now that he was dead the NYPD had decided to drop the charade, which meant no Honor Guard funeral for her captain.

Kate had been shocked when Evelyn Montgomery had asked her to give one of the eulogies. At first she had balked at the prospect, knowing that while she had forgiven him, she still felt he held some responsibility for her mom's death, not to mention the incarceration of Richard Castle. But Rick had convinced her to do it, saying that it might at least provide her with some closure.

The day of the funeral was sunny and warm, the spring air flowing through her hair as she stood next to the grave site, dressed in a black pant suit. Castle stood beside her as the priest performed the service. Kate couldn't take her eyes off of his family. He had three children who were now without their father. Three children who would grow up knowing that their father had died after committing a crime. Despite what Montgomery had done, she still felt for those small children and the hell she knew they were going through.

After the priest finished, the eulogies started. A small parade of mourners came up to tell stories of their fallen loved one, thoughts on his life, and remembrances of his career and family. When it was finally her turn she and Castle made their way towards the podium. She had only agreed to do this if he could stand by her side. She didn't think she could do this without him, so he had agreed to stand by her while she talked about the man who had cost her so much.

Standing in front of about a hundred people, giving her thoughts on her fallen captain, Kate remembered the first time she had met Roy Montgomery. It was her first week in uniform, and the trial of Richard Castle had yet to start. She had snuck her way into the record room to look at her mom's case file. At that point she couldn't believe that Richard Castle could have had her mom killed. She couldn't understand why he would do such a thing. She knew that he mom had known the man, but she couldn't fathom how that could have led to her mom's murder.

Montgomery had caught her sifting through the file, and had let her read it for five minutes before he wanted her out, warning her that she shouldn't be in the record room. After that he had mentored her, and helped her reach detective faster than any woman ever had.

Kate was half way through her eulogy when she heard Rick shout her name. Before she could figure out what was happening, he was tackling her to the ground. When they landed, him on top of her, she felt the wind being knocked out of her lungs. Before she could push him off of her, she became aware of a sharp pain in her chest.

She saw Rick pull himself up off of her, and kneel by her side. She couldn't breathe. The pain was so intense; black spots started to appear at the edges of her vision. Unconsciousness was coming to claim her. She welcomed it. Anything to get rid of the pain.

Looking up she stared into Rick's stunning blue eyes.

"Stay with me, Kate. Please. Stay with me," he cried, as he put pressure on the wound on her chest. He looked up and shouted, "Someone call 911!"

Kate used some of her energy to bring her hand up to his cheek, wiping away the tears she saw flowing down his cheeks.

"Stay with me, Kate, please. Please," he pleaded, looking her in the eyes. As her vision started to fade, the last thing she heard was, "Stay with me, Kate. I love, you. I love you Kate."

xxxx

**a.n. Blame the cliff hanger on AWM. **

Reviews would be great! Let me know what you think!


	4. Chapter 4

The first thing she became aware of was the pain. Hot spikes of agony ripped through her chest. It was like nothing she had ever felt before. The second thing she became aware of was some sort of beeping sound on her left side. _I'm in the hospital,_ she thought groggily. _What the hell happened?_

She then became aware of the hand that had a tight grip on her fingers. _Castle?_

When she finally managed to fight through the pain and confusion, she opened her eyes and saw him sitting in a chair beside her, bags underneath his eyes and tear tracks still apparent on his cheeks.

"Rick," she murmured.

His head shot up as he looked at her, "Kate! Thank goodness." He reached a hand out and brushed a lock of her hair away from her face. He then pulled the hand back, clearly embarrassed by the intimate gesture.

"Wha…what happened?"

He gave her an odd look before he said, "You were shot at Montgomery's funeral. A sniper."

With his words the memories come flooding back. Standing giving a eulogy to her fallen captain. Castle calling out her name and tackling her to the ground then begging her to stay with him.

_Kate I love you, I love you, Kate._

Her eyes widened as she remembered the words. Castle gave her a worried look when he noticed the heart monitor picking up on her increased heart rate. She looked away from him, his blue eyes too intense, too full of concern.

Over the last six months she had increasingly realized that she loved him. He was her best friend, the one person in her life she could trust more than anyone else. She hadn't wanted to take it any further though, for a couple reasons. First she was worried that he didn't feel the same and second she was worried that if it didn't work out that she'd lose the most important person in her life.

Now he'd said the words. Now it was out there and she couldn't just ignore it. Could she? Could she just write it off to heat of the moment? Did she want to? Her thoughts raced as she struggled to come up with something to say. Deciding she'd just let it go for now, she turned to look at him again.

"Do you need some more pain medication, Kate?" Castle asked as their eyes met again.

She nodded, grimacing at the reminder of the pain she was in. She'd been distracted by the memories, but she could feel the pounding pain radiating from the center of her chest, making every nerve in her body feel like it was on fire.

Castle picked up the call button and pressed it.

"Did they catch the sniper?" She asked while they waited for a nurse to come into her room.

"Not as far as I know. I talked to Ryan and Esposito, but they aren't on the case. They said the 19th precinct is handling it, and that your new captain wouldn't let them near it." Castle had met her two partners a few months previously when they had all went out to drinks. They hadn't hit it off, exactly, since Castle was very quiet around people he didn't trust, but they still knew of each other. It didn't surprise her that the boys weren't being allowed on the case.

Kate sighed. The sniper might have been another way they could have nailed Bracken.

"It's going to be okay, Kate," Castle said, obviously seeing her worry.

"You don't know that," she whispered, the pain really getting to her.

"I do. You will recover from this and you'll get back to work, and you'll take down that arrogant bastard. You're the strongest, most extraordinary person I've ever met. You'll do it."

He'd said it before, but she was still shocked at how sincere his voice was when he said things like that. How could she doubt that this man loved her when he could say such things and _mean_ them?

Before she could say anything, a nurse came in, introduced herself and gave her another dose of pain medication. It wasn't long after that Kate started to drift off. Her last thoughts before sleep took her was that she needed to tell him how she felt. She loved him too.

xxxx

When she woke up next Castle was still sitting by her side. She squeezed his hand and he looked up to her face.

"Hey," she said softly, really needing a drink of water.

"Hey. Need anything?"

"Water would be great," she said.

He reached over to the bedside table and grabbed a small cup of water. He helped her take a sip and then sat the cup down on the table.

"Thanks."

He smiled. "How are you feeling, need more pain meds?"

"No I'm much better than before." He nodded. She did feel better. The pain wasn't as intense as it had been and she felt much more awake than she had been the first time she woke up.

"Castle?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you too."

He looked at her, eyes widened with surprise. "You…you remember?"

"Yeah. Did you mean it?"

"Yes," he said confidently. "I love you, Kate. I know it's weird given how we met, but I do."

She smiled widely. Despite the circumstances she was happy that they had finally said the words. Sure, she had her doubts and her fears, but if the bullet wound in her chest taught her anything it was that she didn't have time to waste. She knew her mom would want her to be happy.

"So are we…together now," Castle asked tentatively.

"Yeah, I guess we are. But Rick," she said, pausing to gather her thoughts, "we need to go slow. Obviously I'm going to be out of commission for a while, and we both have emotional scars from the past nine years that are still healing. And it's going to be bumpy at times, but I want this. I want you."

"Any speed is fine with me Kate, as long as we're together. I love you."

"I love you too," she said, shocked at how much easier it was to say a second time.

xxxx

_Three months later…_

Her recovery had gone well, or at least as well as it could have. She and Castle had spent the entire three months up at her dad's cabin. At first she had wanted to go alone, even with their conversation in the hospital, but Castle had convinced her that she would need someone there, and her dad, still being an alcoholic, wouldn't be able to do it. She had reluctantly agreed.

He'd been there for her even when she didn't think she needed anyone, and she knew that after their conversation in the hospital, he wasn't going to leave her side easily. So she had let him come along, and she's really glad that she did. She couldn't have done it without him.

On their first day back in the city, they were dusting and airing out their apartment when there was a knock at the door. Scowling at the interruption, Kate made her way and checked the peephole. She didn't recognize the young woman on the other side, though she knew the eyes. The blue eyes.

"Rick," Kate said loudly so he could hear her from where he was dusting in the office area.

"Yeah?"

"There's someone here to see you," she said as she opened the door.

"Hi," Alexis Castle said nervously. "Is Rick Castle home?"

"Yeah," Kate said, smiling. She stepped aside to allow the young woman to enter. Alexis, at age 16, was a beautiful woman. She had striking red hair and her father's stunning blue eyes. Rick, over the last few months, had been trying to contact her, but her mother had kept getting in the way, not allowing Rick to have any contact with his daughter.

Kate knew that it had hit Rick hard that even though he was innocent he had lost his daughter.

"Alexis?!" Rick said as he entered the living room.

"Daddy?" Alexis said, tears now evident in her eyes. She rushed into her father's arms, squeezing tightly. Kate felt tears sting the corners of her own eyes as she made her way into the kitchen to give the pair some privacy.

xxxx

A couple hours later Alexis had left and Kate and Rick sat on their living room couch, Kate cuddled into his side, her head on his shoulder.

"So how is she?" Kate asked cautiously. She had for the most part stayed out of the way so that the father and daughter could spend some much needed time together.

"She's different than I remember," Rick said sadly. "She was always outgoing, even as a really small child. Her mom seems to have made her, I don't know, less of a people person. We always used to have these talks, just the two of us. We could talk about almost anything. Now it seemed like I had to scratch and claw for any sort of information. I don't know if that's her personality or if she just doesn't trust me anymore."

"I'm sorry, Rick."

He shook his head, then placed a kiss on her forehead. "Not your fault. It is what it is. I doubt we'll ever have the relationship we once had. Just knowing that she wants to stay in contact will be better than it has been. Maybe it'll make us closer as time goes on."

"How long is she in the city?"

"Just for today. Meredith is in town for an audition, but is taking Alexis right back to California. She had to sneak out because her mom still wouldn't let her come see me."

Kate sighed. "It's really unfair."

"Nothing can be done. I lost custody officially when I was convicted. It doesn't matter that I was innocent. I mean sure I could go fight for her again, but she seems happy enough with her mom. I don't…I'm not going to disrupt her life just so I can be a bigger part of her life. She deserves to be happy, even if it isn't with me, you know?"

"You must have been a terrific father."

"I had a blast. You mom met her once you know?"

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. I brought Alexis to her office one day when we were finalizing some details for one of the fundraisers. They seemed to get along right from the start. You must have had a pretty special childhood."

Kate smiled. "Yeah. It was pretty good."

Obviously sensing that she didn't want to discuss her mom, he changed the subject. "I think I'm going to get some writing done. Nikki's calling my name. Call me when you're ready to start dinner and I'll pitch in."

"But it's my turn."

"So? I like to help."

"Fine," she huffed, knowing that he would continue to coddle her until he knew for sure she was 100 percent. He'd been pretty good about it all summer, though she hadn't been an easy patient. She snapped and tried to start petty fights, but never did he take the bait. She loved him even more for putting up with her even when she wasn't an easy person to be around. She just loved him.

They had really taken slow at first. Physically they didn't go past intense make out sessions until three weeks previously when they had finally made love. She had wanted to make their first time special, and it had been. Once she had been cleared for sexual activity by her physical therapist, she had asked him to have dinner at a restaurant near her father's cabin. It had been romantic, and they'd had a really good time. When they got back to the cabin, one thing led to another, as she knew it would, and they'd had the best sex either of them had ever had.

Laying with him that next morning while he dozed on, Kate knew that what they had would be forever. It scared her, of course. After her mom died, she had given up on the idea of happiness. And she never would have imagined that she would have found it with a man who had once been accused of having her mom killed. But she had. And despite her fears, she was going to jump into it with him.

Sitting in her living room a few weeks later, she recalled the memories they had created these last few weeks of being intimate. They had decided that he would move out of the guest room and into her room. At first it had felt weird making room in her closet for his clothes, but it also felt good. It all felt good. It felt right.

xxxx

_Three Days Later…_

She was pissed. She flew into her apartment and put her gun and badge onto the kitchen table, not bothering to take them into their bedroom to take care of them properly.

"Kate?" Castle said, coming into the room from the office.

"Not now, Castle," Kate snapped, then immediately felt guilty for snapping at him. Scrunching her eyes closed, she took a deep breath. She needed to control herself. She was better than this. She needed to be better than this. For him.

Opening her eyes she looked where he had been standing, but the room was empty. Sighing, she went to find him, knowing that she needed to apologize and explain.

He was sitting in the desk chair that they both shared, typing away on his laptop.

She came up behind him and wrapped her arms around his shoulders. "I'm sorry."

He looked up, hurt still swirling in his eyes. "It's okay, Kate. You want to tell me what's wrong?"

"Gates kicked me off the Bracken case."

He spun around and pulled her into his lap. "I'm sorry."

"I just pisses me off, you know?" She said, cuddling closer to his chest, seeking comfort. She'd never been a clingy type, but with him she loved the feel of his arms around her. It made her feel safe and loved.

"I know. Did she say why?"

"Because I'm too close to it, but that doesn't make any sense. I've always been close to it. She was my mother. And the man I'm in love with was sent to jail for it. And the bastard tried to kill me. I couldn't be more close to it. She deserves justice, Rick. You deserve justice. I deserve justice, and I want to be a part of that."

He was silent for a long while as he soothingly rubbed circles on her back. "What if we solved it together?" he asked after a while.

xxxx

**a.n. Obviously I didn't finish this in four parts. One more chapter. Reviews would make me happy happy happy. **


	5. Chapter 5

**a.n. Thanks everyone for the reviews and follows! Here is the last chapter of Framed. Hope you enjoy it!**

**Disclaimer: We got Season 8! If I had owned it, it wouldn't have been so suspenseful.**

**xxxx**

They started slow. They built a murder board in their office, and spent the next week going over the evidence they had surrounding her mother's murder. Kate managed to get a transcript of the tape and they went over that several times, though each time they found nothing new.

"We've got nothing," Kate said, yawning. They'd spent every minute they had going over evidence for the past week. She'd even taken some more time off of work in order to spend more time investigating. They were standing in front of their homemade murder board, looking over the timeline that they had created.

"It's the story, Kate. We have to tell the story. Then we look for the parts of the plot that are missing. First let's go over the characters that we know."

"Okay."

"So we know from what Montgomery gave us, three cops started a kidnapping ring 18 years ago. They were kidnapping mobsters, and then holding them for ransom. All three cops are now dead. Bracken found out about their enterprise, and demanded a cut in order to secure his silence and help. When Bob Arman, an FBI agent, was killed by Montgomery, Bracken arranged to have Joe Pulgatti framed for the murder.

"When your mom got a letter from Pulgaitti around the same time she and I started planning the JI annual fundraiser, she decided to take on his case. When she got too close, Bracken again stepped in and hired Dick Coonan to silence her and frame me. Coonan is in custody, but isn't talking. So they frame me, and get me convicted. But Bracken doesn't know that there is evidence that is out there that exonerates me, and puts him in the crosshairs of the NYPD. But the tape isn't enough, and they weren't able to get enough out of Montgomery before he too was taken out."

"Okay," she said, picking up the thread, "let's say you're Montgomery, and you got blackmailed for almost 20 years by this powerful politician. Doesn't it make sense that you'd keep something as insurance just in case?"

"It does. But he never turned that over to the NYPD if he had it. You said the NYPD talked to his wife?"

"Yeah, she had no idea where he kept any of those files. It wasn't in his safe or any of his home filing cabinets."

"So he stashed it somewhere else."

"If he had it at all," Kate said bitterly. "If it exists, it could be anywhere. We'll never find it. As I said, we have nothing."

"I know," Castle said, sighing. Kate leaned into his side and he put an arm around her. "Let's stop for tonight, just spend some time doing something else. Maybe something will come to us."

She nodded against his shoulder. She was exhausted, and she just wanted to spend some time with him. Pulling back she looked into his eyes and said, "I love you, Rick."

He leaned down and kissed her before saying, "I love you too, Kate. We'll do this, okay? It just might take a while to come up with something."

She nodded, thankful that his optimism hadn't left him. She knew that if she were here alone, she would have long since lost herself in the quicksand.

xxxx

_One Month Later…_

They had spent the last month theorizing and reviewing what they had, looking for anything new, but they'd found nothing. After a month of spinning their wheels, they decided that they needed to take a break from it.

Kate took another day off of work and they spent the day walking through Central Park, visiting the Natural History Museum and going to the top of the Empire State Building. It was a fantastic Saturday, and Kate found that even with the past month's disappointment, she hadn't been this happy since her mother died.

She had always joked about finding her one and done, sometimes wondering if she was just fooling herself that there'd be one man out there for her, but now that she'd found him she couldn't be happier.

After their day out they made their way back to their apartment to get ready for their date. They planned on going to a fancy restaurant and seeing a Broadway show, something neither had done in years.

Kate was about to go into their bedroom when Castle's phone sounded off. He waved for her to keep going as he answered. Shrugging her shoulders she went into the en-suite bathroom and pulled the dress she planned to wear from the peg on the outside of the door.

She was just about through with her makeup when she heard Castle through the closed bathroom door. He knocked, and said, "Kate?"

"Yeah?"

"Babe, we need to talk."

"Now? Rick we'll be late if I don't…"

"Now. Please?"

Getting worried, she slipped on her robe and made her way out of the bathroom. She found him sitting on their bed, holding his phone. His hands were shaking.

"Rick? What is it?"

"I just…" he cleared his throat, "I just got a call from a man named Michael Smith, and he says he was a friend of Roy Montgomery. He told me that he has the evidence we've been looking for and he wants to meet."

Kate sat next to him. "How do we know he's telling the truth?"

"We don't. It could be a trap. But it could also be the break we've spent the last month trying to find."

"So what do we do?"

"What do you want to do? You're the cop remember?"

"Right," she huffed. "Where does he want to meet and when?"

"Parking garage in an hour."

"Really? On date night? Asshole," she said gruffly. "This had better be some damn good information or I'm going to be pissed. I've been looking forward to this night for a couple weeks."

"I know."

"Alright. Let me get my pants back on, and we'll go. Do you think I should call Ryan and Espo to back us up?"

"I don't know. What if we spook him? I don't want to risk this guy just dumping the evidence."

"Alright. Let's go."

xxxx

The meeting with Smith did not go as planned. He'd just told them that he stashed the file in the corner of the parking garage when a van flew by spraying a hail of bullets over the entire area. Kate would have been dead for sure if it hadn't been for Castle who had seen the van coming and had tackled her to the ground and then pulled them both behind a car.

Kate could feel the panic setting in. The sounds of the bullets, the terror that she could have been hit, that _he_ could have been hit all making it hard for her to breathe. She'd been seeing a therapist for her PTSD, so it shouldn't have hit her so strong.

"Kate, look at me," Castle begged, his hands on either side of her face. "Kate you need to breathe. Can you do that? Just follow after me."

It took her almost 10 minutes before she could breathe evenly again.

"What…what happened?"

"You had a panic attack. Smith is dead."

"The file? God, Castle, tell me we have the file."

"I haven't looked yet. I was more concerned with you. Let's go look." He pulled her up and then walked over to the corner where Smith said he had stashed the file. Castle never let go of her hand, which Kate was extremely thankful for.

The file was there. Kate pulled it out of the railing Smith had shoved it into and held it to her chest. "We have to call the murder in, but we can't send this info into Gates yet. I want to know. I need to know."

Castle nodded. "What do you want to do?"

"Take this home. I'll call Ryan and Espo, tell them what happened, but I'll say it was just me. It'll be better if you don't get involved."

"You sure?"

She nodded, then fell into his chest, the file pressed between them. She felt his arms wrap around her. "Let's hope this is it. I just want this to be over."

"Me too. Me too."

xxxx

"This is everything, Rick," Kate said a few hours later. They had spread the contents of the file over their desk, and had went over everything. "We've got him."

"Kate we need to get this to Gates now. If they find out we have this, and it gets taken, it'll be over."

Kate nodded and started packing up the file, making sure she got every piece of evidence that Smith had handed them. This was it. For the first time in over nine years, she had answers. She not only knew who'd had her mother killed, but also the evidence to make sure he paid for it.

xxxx

_One Month Later…_

It took a month. Gates hadn't allowed her on the investigation, which while it hadn't made her happy, hadn't surprised her. NYPD regulations weren't something Gates could easily get around, and Kate knew she was too close to it, even if she wouldn't admit it out loud.

A month after she and Castle had turned over the file, Gates called Kate into her office.

"Sit down, Detective," the new Captain said as Kate entered her office.

Kate sat, wondering what was going on. She knew it had to be about Bracken. She desperately wanted it to be good news.

"We're going to make the arrest tomorrow," Gates said, looking at her best detective.

"Tomorrow."

"Yes. Now, I know that it's against the regulations, but I've pulled some strings. You get the collar."

"I get to arrest him?" Kate hadn't been expecting to know anything about the arrest until afterward, if at all. She sat there shocked, not really knowing what to say.

"Yes. Now, gather up Mr. Castle and get yourself to DC. All the arrangements are made," Gates said, handing over the information the detective would need. "Let Mr. Castle ride in the car with you, but he can't go in for the arrest. The two of you deserve this."

"Th-thank you, Captain," Kate stammered, still wondering what new dimension she had stepped through. She and Gates had a professional relationship, but she wouldn't call it friendly. After Gates had been appointed by the NYPD to take over for Montgomery, Kate became much more wary of the woman.

Kate left the captain's office, gathered her jacket, and made her way out of the 12th precinct. It was time to get justice for her mom, for Castle and for herself.

xxxx

"William Bracken, you're under the arrest for fraud, drug trafficking, obstruction of justice, conspiracy to commit murder, attempted murder, and the murder of my mother Johanna Beckett. Now turn around."

Kate marched the disgraced Senator down the stairs of the Capitol building and into the arms of Ryan and Esposito. She stood and watched while her partners shoved the man into the back of a cruiser. It was over. The man who had killed her mom, who had framed the love of her life, and who had tried to have her killed was cuffed and on his way to prison.

She walked the rest of the way down the stairs and fell into the waiting arms of Richard Castle. "She'd be proud of you, you know?" he said after a moment's silence.

Kate said nothing as the tears fell down her cheeks. When she finally found her voice, she pulled back so she could look into his eyes. "I couldn't have done this without you, Rick. Thank you. And I'm sorry, so, so sorry that you lost so much time because of that man. I…"

"Shh, Kate. It's not your fault. We've talked about this, remember?"

"But you lost so much. I should have tried harder, looked into it further. I should have made sure."

"Not your fault. It wasn't your case. He made the evidence fit. Now, come on, there's something I need to do."

Nodding, she accepted his hand and followed him. She would follow this man anywhere. Thinking back over the months they'd been together, she realized that he had become her everything, the one thing in the world that she couldn't live without. He was hers, and she was his, and she wouldn't have it any other way.

Lost in her thoughts she didn't realize that they had stopped walking until Castle squeezed her hand. Looking around she noticed they were on the steps of the Supreme Court building.

"Rick, what are we doing here?"

"I…I have something to ask you."

"Okay…" Kate said, wondering what he was going to ask her, and wondering what it had to do with the Supreme Court building. He looked nervous.

"This is where you were headed," Castle said, turning them both so they faced the building. "You told me that your goal was be the first female Supreme Court Justice. It pains me to know that that dream was ended because of the tragedy you suffered.

"Your future was derailed because of the monster you just arrested. You make a difference in this world, Kate. You've made a difference in my world. I spent eight years in prison. Eight years of living with some of the most vial humans ever created. But you got me out. If it weren't for you, I'd still be in there, waiting for a needle."

Kate was crying again. She didn't know where this was going, but it was hard to hear. She reached behind her and took his hand, wanting the comfort that he always provided her.

"Not only that, but you gave me a home when I had nothing. You invited me into your life even though you owed me nothing, even though I was less than pleasant towards you for weeks. You gave me life again, and helped me find love again. I am nothing without you, Kate. Nothing. And I know that this is really fast, but I don't want to waste any more time." Standing behind her, he grasped her shoulders and turned her around to face him, then got down on one knee. "You are my life, Katherine Beckett. Will you marry me?"

He was asking her to marry him? She just stood there in shock, not having seen it coming. They hadn't even talked about their future, though she knew she wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. She couldn't find the words she needed, so she simply nodded her head up and down as the tears continued to fall down her cheeks.

Rick pulled a ring out of his pocked and slipped it on her ring finger, then pulled her in for a deep kiss.

Pulling back Kate said, "yes, yes, yes, yes," then kissed him again. She was getting married to Richard Castle. Her favorite author. Her best friend. Her everything.

xxxx

_One Year Later…_

They didn't expect an answer. In fact, they knew the answer. But they wanted to be here at least one time to show the man that he hadn't won. That they had both found happiness and that he was no longer capable of taking it from him.

Kate's quest, which had started when she was 19 years old, would end this day. She had the answers, and even if the man said nothing, she would already have her closure. She had justice, and that was all that mattered. There would be no monthly visits to ask the same question over and over again. There would be no tears when the question wasn't answered.

No, she and Castle didn't expect any answer other than what they already knew, but they would ask. They'd ask him why.

William Bracken was behind bars, and would be for the rest of his life. For the first and last time, she would visit him in prison, with her husband at her side, and ask him the one question she knew would never have a satisfactory answer. She'd ask him why.

**fin.**

xxxx

**a.n.2. And finished! Hope you liked it!**


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